Ringlingville USA: The Stupendous Story of Seven Siblings and Their Stunning Circus Success

The Ringling Brothers began their business under the most modest of circumstances and through hard work, business savvy, and some luck created the largest, most famous circus in the world. They became wealthy men, one 50 cent admission ticket at a time.

Ringlingville USA chronicles the brothers' journey from immigrant poverty to enduring glory as the kings/i>

Overview

The Ringling Brothers began their business under the most modest of circumstances and through hard work, business savvy, and some luck created the largest, most famous circus in the world. They became wealthy men, one 50 cent admission ticket at a time.

Ringlingville USA chronicles the brothers' journey from immigrant poverty to enduring glory as the kings of the circus world. The Ringlings and their circus were last studied in depth over four decades ago. Now, for the first time, the brothers' detailed financial records and personal correspondence are available to researchers. Jerry Apps weaves together that information with newspaper accounts, oral histories, colorful anecdotes, and stunning circus ephemera and photos, many never before been published, to illuminate the importance of the Ringlings' accomplishments. He describes how the Ringling Brothers confronted the challenges of taxation, war, economic pressure, changing technology, and personal sorrows to find their place in history. The brothers emerge as complex characters whose ambition, imagination, and pure hucksterism fueled the phenomenon that was the Ringling Brothers' Circus.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

2005 Outstanding Academic Title from Choice Magazine

"Jerry Apps diligently searched the most extensive circus archives in America before writing about the Brothers Ringling. He covers the lives of the Ringlings and provides extensive examples of family correspondence. He details financial records of their circuses, proving their financial success. Best of all, Ringlingville USA is historically correct." (Fred Dr. Pfening Jr., Editor, Bandwagon: The Journal of the Circus Historical Society)

"Congratulations to Jerry Apps for Ringlingville USA. This is an excellent historical story about my grandfather, Alf T. Ringling, and his brothers. Ringlingville brought bittersweet memories of my days with the circus, 1937 through 1941, and the lullaby of the wheels." (Paul T. Ringling)

Related Subjects

Meet the Author

Jerry Apps is the author of more than thirty-five books on Wisconsin and U.S. history. His writing has appeared in such publications as The Journal of American History, Wisconsin Trails, and the Wisconsin Magazine of History, and he is a regular columnist for Wisconsin Guide. He is especially known for his histories of rural and country life. Apps has won numerous awards for his writing from the Wisconsin Library Association, the Council for Wisconsin Writers, the Robert F. Gard Foundation, the Upper Midwest Booksellers Association, and the Wisconsin Historical Society. In 2001 he received the Barnes and Noble Pride of Wisconsin Award for Excellence in the Field of Regional Literature. He divides his time between his home in Madison and his farm, Roshara, near Wild Rose, Wisconsin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

Ringlingville USA: The Stupendous Story of Seven Siblings and Their Stunning Circus Success 4.5 out of 5based on
0 ratings.
2 reviews.

QuilterWI

More than 1 year ago

The story of Ringlingville is written after much investigation and what must have been hours of research. Having grown up in Baraboo, I have heard many of the stories detailed by my grandparents and parents. The author researched the Ringling family from the beginning and told of their struggles to get started in the Circus business. The writing is fantastic and very accurate. A great read for anyone at all interested in Wisconsin history or circus history.

Anonymous

More than 1 year ago

The book is not bad,but it's so damn long i fell aslwep on the third chapter0-0